


you are a memory (we'd been here before)

by ohallows (dean_n_pie)



Category: DCU, DCU (Comics), Teen Titans (Comics)
Genre: AU, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, M/M, New 52, Pre-New 52, more hinted at, not relationship-heavy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-31
Updated: 2016-12-31
Packaged: 2018-09-13 18:30:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9136273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dean_n_pie/pseuds/ohallows
Summary: Tim's starting to remember things that he knows never happened. And its not only him, either.





	

**Author's Note:**

> i... don't know what this is. at all. i like maybe 50% of it? probably less?
> 
> AU of TT#12 (2014) right after they bounce thru the harvest dimensions (as in, Superboy doesn't sacrifice himself and get tossed into like. a pocket dimension or whatever the hell lmao, and the core four are basically running from Harvest)
> 
> BASICALLY - where the core four start to remember the old 'verse after bouncing thru time/dimensions in the weird harvest thing
> 
> (note - i've personally retconned the whole concept of 'tim drake' being an alias so assume his original origin story is, for the most part, accurate)

It all starts innocently enough. Well, maybe not innocently, but there was no real precursor. As long as you don't count the whole jumping through time, and then the weird dimension-shifting thing Harvest brought them into before Tim broke all of them out of it with a well-placed batarang.

So maybe there was a little background that made it happen. Maybe. 

Tim thinks it started with Bart the day after they all successfully stopped Superboy from sacrificing himself, convinced him that it wasn't his fault and that they could protect him. Cassie and Bart got on board more quickly than Tim expected, which maybe should have been the first sign. Tim... still isn't totally sure what it was the "first sign" of, but that's the theory he's working on and he hasn't been able to name it yet. 

But it started with Bart. He seemed really out of it after they all had escaped from Harvest's clutches (again) and made it back to the penthouse. Miguel had returned to his home for the weekend, and thankfully there was no one else there. Tim was a bit distracted because he felt kinda fuzzy, so he didn't really question the absences.

Bart was more subdued than usual after they changed out of their uniforms, which Tim chalked up to the lack of Solstice being around, but it was Cassie who pushed him on it. 

"You okay?" she asked, sitting next to him on the couch. Bart just shrugged.

"Do... you wanna talk about it?" Cassie asks, and Tim is slightly taken aback because she's never really seemed the whole emotional type before, but he decides to just shut up and let the moment happen.

When Bart shrugs again rather than talking or trying to change the subject or even, God forbid, run away, Tim starts to get concerned.

"Do you ever feel like something's, like. Missing? Not like. Not like you misplaced it, or whatever, because I do that all the time, but just. It feels like someone should be here and they're not and it's. Weird."

Tim freezes.

Because that's what he feels a lot of the time, too. 

(A swish of dark hair, falling asleep on the rooftops, training and training and training, photographs and scrapbooks and the circus, boomerangs, earthquakes, and buildings collapsing, gang wars that go all wrong and end up almost destroying Gotham - none of which happened, ever, so Tim isn't sure what to think, except that they all show up in his nightmares.)

And of course Tim's heard about the multiverse theory, who hasn't by this point, but when you actually turn to a practical application of the theory it just gets that little bit more unbelievable. Especially when you try and apply it to your own life.

Tim's entire brain hurts. 

Because maybe, just maybe, there's some substance to that theory regardless of how much Tim doesn't want it to be true, but how else can you just explain away a group of people remembering things that never happened?

A diagnosis of congruent psychological breaks can only carry you so far. And with a lack of any other symptoms (at least, none that Tim can find, and while he might not be a psychiatrist he does have rather more psych knowledge of disorders than your average 17-year-old) it's not really standing anymore in the face of Tim's scrutiny.

Bart frowns (again, and Tim is still taken aback by the new knowledge that Bart's face can make more than two emotions) and Cassie looks confused, and Conner looks distant, and Tim's just trying to parse his way through this fun new potential that (might) just explain why his instincts seem to be screaming at him that something's not correct on a consistent basis. Which, to be fair, could be due to the fact that they're all being hunted down by a lunatic with enough manpower to chase them around the world with nothing to lose. But Tim isn't so sure that that's the entire picture anymore. 

And... that's when the goons from N.O.W.H.E.R.E. break through the door and all hell breaks loose. And, incidentally, make Tim question the entire above scenario for about the 37th time. He keeps a lot to himself for someone who expects honesty from everyone else.

"Shit, shit, shit, SHIT," Cassie is muttering, ducking behind the island in the kitchen as Harvest's men shoot at her. "Not how I wanted my day to go, boys!"

Tim throws a smoke grenade at Harvest's team, grabbing Kon by the arm when he doesn't move and bodily hauling him over to Cassie's side. They all crouch there as Bart spins around the room, looking like a pinball as he speeds around the room knocking out the men. He comes to a stop in the middle of the mess of unconscious bodies, hands on his hips. 

"Didn't even knock, that's so rude."

"We need to go, now," Tim says, pulling out a kitchen drawer and grabbing a small EMP emitter. "This'll stop them from being able to trace us for a while."

Kon raises an eyebrow. "Really? You keep one in the kitchen?"

Tim shrugs. "I was taught by Batman, paranoia is basically in the job description." 

He pressed a button and the electronic appliances around them sputter and die. Tossing it back into the drawer, he stands up and grabs his bo staff from the table. "C'mon, I know a safe house we can go to."

"How about Smallville?" Kon asks, grabbing Tim's shirt sleeve. His eyes look brighter than usual, but they aren't completely focused on Tim. It was almost like he's looking through him. "There might be people there who can help."

"Smallville?" Tim asks. "What's in Smallville that can help?"

"The. Uh. I thought." Kon shakes his head and his eyes gradually become more focused. "What was I saying?"

"Uh, Smallville?" Cassie says, raising an eyebrow. 

"Where's Smallville?" Kon asks. 

"You were the one who wanted us to -" Cassie starts yelling, but Tim holds up a hand, and she quiets down. 

"I hear something," he says, and all four of them fall silent, trying to listen.

"We need to go," Tim mouths, slowly so that everyone can catch it, and Bart nods with a singlemindedness that none of them have yet seen even as Cassie and Kon lock eyes before grabbing Bart and Tim, respectively. Tim holds up three fingers and begins the countdown. Just as a parade of footsteps enter the kitchen, Superboy and Cassie are breaking through the floor below them and it's a free fall as they plummet down to the next floor. 

Kon lets Tim hit the ground gently, running to provide backup for Cassie while Tim runs to the door. There are a whole horde of men barreling toward him; he swears and slams the door shut.

"Kon!" he yells and, mercy of mercies, Kon understands and drags a heavy cabinet in front of the door. 

"We need to go, now!" Bart yells, electricity crackling off of him as his eyes dart around the room. He vibrates through the wall for a split second before he appears, looking panicked. "They're about to break through the door!"

Tim gives one look to the window before Kon meets his gaze. Cassie grabs Bart before either of them can say anything, calling out a, "Best option we got!" even as she breaks through the glass and flies out into the night sky. Kon grabs Tim's arm and pulls him out of the window, just as Tim throws a couple explosive batarangs into the room. 

They're about 50 feet away when the door breaks open and the batarangs give off an ear-splitting screech as they detonate, covering the entire room in smoke. Tim turns away as Kon and Cassie both pick up speed, holding his free arm in front of his face to block wind burn. 

"Woo! And that's how you do it!" Bart crows, punching the air. "Hey, Wonder G- I mean, Cass, you can let me down. I can scout ahead."

Tim watches Cassie's grip tighten on Bart's arm. 

"No," she says, shortly. "We need to stay together. Who knows what's waiting for us."

"Not anything good," Kon says, face grim.

"Wait, Conner -" Tim says, brain finally, finally putting together the pieces he should have long ago (and really, Batman would be so disappointed in him). "Did you say Smallville, earlier?"

"Uh, I think so? Couldn't tell ya why. Does it matter?"

"Maybe," Tim says, digging around in his utility belt. 

"Are you going to tell us, Red, or just wait for us to figure it out?" Cassie asks, glaring at him. 

"We might actually be able to find help there." He pulls the little black earpiece out of the belt and taps Kon's arm. He points toward a grassy expanse just below them and Kon and Cassie angle down, dropping Tim and Bart onto the grass. "One minute." 

He presses the comm-link into his ear and prays that someone is listening. 

"A?" Tim asks, playing with the frequency on the special family comm-link that he keeps in his back pocket (not, like, literally) just for situations like this. "B? Nightwing? Anyone on comms?"

"I'm here, sir," Alfred answers, and Tim heaves probably the biggest sigh of relief in his life. Alfred, always coming through for him. He should really get him a better Christmas present this year. Of course, he might not live till Christmas, so the point might well be moot, but whatever.

"Man, it's good to hear from you," Tim says, not even trying to fight the big smile creeping up on his face. 

"I do suppose you could hear from me more if you managed to make your way to Gotham every once in a while, sir," Alfred says, voice still sounding pleasant, but Tim takes it for the reproach it is. 

"Message received, A. I'll work on it. In the meantime, do you think you could do us a favor?"

"Of course, Master Timothy. What do you require?"

"Not much. An address."

\--

Tim can honestly say that the most awkward moment of his life has to be knocking on the Kent's door in full superhero regalia at near midnight on a Tuesday night. Kon is shifting uncomfortably next to him and Tim can't really blame him. As awkward as it is for him, at least he's not a clone of their son who's wanted for the murder of innocent lives. 

But that's all beside the point.

The Kents, suffice to say, are the sweetest people Tim has ever met. He's relatively sure that no one else in the universe would have responded to Conner's awkward little wave after Tim introduces him as Superman's clone by ushering them all inside for a slice of pie and a place to stay in exchange for an explanation. And if they recognize Conner from the news stories and multiple wanted reports out for his head, they don't mention it. 

"We. Aren't really sure how it happened, exactly," Cassie explains around a mouthful of peach cobbler.

"Basically I was created to be an abomination and follow the will of N.O.W.H.E.R.E. but um. I haven't been too successful with that, I guess, until recently anyway," Kon says, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. Tim almost chokes on his pie. 

Bart's already on his third piece, but neither Mr. nor Mrs. Kent look at all surprised. Must be one of the benefits of growing up with a Kryptonian for a son. 

Now, it really makes sense where Clark gets his morals from. Guess nurture really does win the battle over nature, Tim muses. 

"Well, of course you four can stay here for a time. We aren't the type to turn down those in need of a little help," Mrs. Kent says, beaming at them. "Especially not any of Clark's friends."

'Friends' might be stretching it a bit (Tim doesn't actually think any of them have met Clark face-to-face before, with the exception of maybe Conner) but he's not about to try and convince the Kents to not let them stay, either. 

"And don't worry, son," Mr. Kent says. "We know a little something about villains forcing you to do things you wouldn't ever do on a good day. It's not your fault."

(And there's Wonder Woman, killing a man over his treatment of her greatest friend, forcing him to act against his nature, and now Tim's just getting more and more confused.)

Kon swallows, heavily, and Tim looks away when he notices that Kon's eyes seem to be misting over, slightly. 

"Thanks," he says instead, hoping to skate over that entire moment with some semblance of grace. "We shouldn't be here for long, I promise. We just needed somewhere safe to regroup, and the Batcave's off-limits. I'm sure Clark told you about how paranoid Batman is about metas coming into his city." He tries to turn it into a joke, but about 90% of his body is screaming at him that it fell flat, so super flat, and yet the Kents laugh.

Tim will take the pity laughs when he can get them. He isn't too proud. 

"Well, we've set up two cots in the barn outside. One or two of you can take Clark's old room - there should be an extra sleeping bag in the closet, but let us know if you want to break out our old air mattress instead."

"Of course, as long as it doesn't have any holes in it," Martha laughs, hitting Jonathan with her newspaper when he rolls his eyes.

"I'm sure it's fine, kids," he says, and Tim no longer wonders just how on Earth Clark got to be the boy scout he is. 

"Cass, if you want some privacy, you can take the upstairs bed," Tim offers, after the Kents have left the room. As much as it will suck to sleep on a cot again, he has been in worse situations. He should be thankful just to have a roof over his head tonight. 

Tomorrow, they're heading to Gotham, Bruce be damned. The Drake mansion is large enough for four teenagers, and Tim's relatively sure he can get Alfred on his side to push back against Bruce's ridiculous no-meta policy enough for one or two nights. 

They'll be gone before Harvest has a chance to wreak any havoc on Gotham. Bruce has no need to worry. 

"Thanks for the offer, Tim, but let Conner take it. He's had the harder day out of all of us."

Tim's still surprised to see Cassie acting so compassionate, sometimes. 

"Um, I don't - I don't totally want to be alone right now, if I get to have a say."

Tim sighs. "Of course you do, Conner. You're part of this team."

Bart vibrates slightly. "Howsabout Tim and Conner stay here and me and Cassie go out to the barn? There are only 2 cots out there anyway."

Tim and Conner both shrug. "It's fine with me if it's alright with Cassie," Tim says, glancing over at her.

"As long as Bart doesn't try to pull anything," she replies, folding her arms and glaring at him. He immediately holds both hands up defensively. 

"Hey, I'm a taken man! You think I'd betray Solstice like that?"

Cassie rolls her eyes and grabs him by the ear, pulling him forcibly out the door. "You two have fun!" she calls out behind her, and a flick of Kon's wrist makes the lock turn once she's shut the door. 

He turns to face Tim and the carefully cultivated mask he's been wearing all night cracks. 

"Tim, I - I killed all those people, Tim, I -" Kon's hands are covering his face so Tim leans into his side and wraps an arm around his shoulders. "I would never, I wouldn't, I promise - how could he make me do this, I -" He cuts off on a choked sob.

"Kon, Conner, I know, we know you didn't mean to, it's fine, we're all on your side."

"Tim, no, you don't get it," Kon whispers, pushing at Tim's arms ineffectively. Tim realizes that Kon doesn't actually want him to shift away - if Kon didn't want to be touched, Tim would already have been shoved through the far wall there. "What if it comes back? What if I hurt one of you?"

(A shaved head and a ripped black t-shirt, running and hiding and calling for help before trying to fight, a sickening crunch and scream of pain as his forearm shatters - it hurts more than he expected it to - and then it's nothing but destruction and absence and -)

Tim shakes his head as he pulls back from the - images? memories? it's gotten to the point where he doesn't even know anymore - and just shakes his head firmly. 

"You won't. It won't happen again. I promise. Plus," he tries for levity, "do you think Cassie, Bart, and I would actually let you hurt us? You'd be in for one hell of a fight, cloneboy."

Kon freezes next to him. "What did you call me?"

"Um. Cloneboy?" Tim repeats, and he's not sure why he's unsure, and he's not sure why he said it, but Kon has that distant look in his eyes again and Tim doesn't know what to say.

"Rob," Kon mutters, quiet and soft, before he's blinking back to himself, staring up at Tim. 

"What do we do?" he asks, a complete 180, and Tim feels kinda floored. He's used to complete emotional switches (hello, he works with Batman, and let's not pretend that working with Jason is anything consistent, especially if Black Mask or the Joker is involved) but somehow this one throws him.

"I don't. I'm not totally sure. Leave, once we can. We don't want to make this a target."

Conner nods, blinking again, more slowly this time. Tim starts to move away to grab the sleeping bag and set it up, but a firm hand on his arm halts him. 

"Don't - I know I don't have any right to ask, but just - please."

Tim nods and lets go, moving closer to Conner even as he feels him begin to tremble.

The bed isn't big enough for the both of them to lie down comfortably so Tim leans them against the wall, holding Kon tightly. 

Neither of them use the sleeping bag that night.

\--

"Superboy, your left -"

A shout, bodies hitting the floor with sickening crunches, not dead but probably permanently crippled - 

"Wonder Girl, go help Kid Flash!" 

Screams of pain as Tim swipes the electrically-charged bō staff through a crowd of soldiers running at him. Him and Kon are fighting back-to-back, trying and nearly failing to hold off the scores of N.O.W.H.E.R.E. fighters coming at them, blank looks in their eyes as they ignored the pain and kept coming at them. 

Bart was spinning around like a top, moving too quickly for the eye to catch, and it still wasn't doing anything. 

There were too many of them. For every one that Tim downed with his bo staff, every 5 that Bart knocked out with a well-positioned mini-tornado, every 10 that Cassie and Conner knocked out with nothing more than their fists, more and more rose up in the empty spaces left behind. 

It was an impossible battle. 

"We need to retreat!" Tim yelled, catching Cassie's eyes. "There are too many of them!"

"Thanks for the - ugh - update, genius!" Cassie yelled back, ducking under a soldier's arm and using her lasso to propel him into an oncoming group. "Could have worked that out myself!"

"I'll give us an out, but it'll only last for a few seconds!" Tim grabs his final grenade from his belt, meeting Cassie's eyes. She nods sharply, tossing a soldier away from her and striking another one in the rib cage.

"Superboy, Kid Flash! Be ready to move!" 

Tim lobs the grenade behind him even as he'a already diving for Kon's outstretched arm. 

"Close your eyes!" he yells, and covers his own as he feels Conner's fingers slip along his wrist and secure his grip. There are shouts from the other soldiers as they're temporarily blinded, and then Kon is hauling him up into the air and they're moving again. 

\--

They find an abandoned warehouse about 300 miles away from where they had been attacked. Tim wanted to go overseas and test out their luck in the deserts of Africa but Bart's out of energy and collapses the second they step inside the warehouse.  

"I wish... I could call Diana," Cassie says, panting, and Tim shoots her a concerned look.

"Wonder Woman? Have you even met her?" he asks. 

"Yeah," Cassie says, raising an eyebrow. "She was my mentor."

"Since when?" Bart pipes up finally, opening his bleary eyes. "You hate being called Wonder Girl..."

"I - I don't remember, okay? But she did - she taught me - I helped her - she was like my family... right?" Cassie trails off, looking lost. She shakes her head before burying it in her arms, shoulders trembling. 

Conner scoots over there and wraps an arm around her shoulders. She turns into the embrace and, for once, silently accepts the comfort. 

Tim, on the other hand, has been mentally cataloguing every piece of information he has on Cassie and trying to see if Cassie and Wonder Woman would have even crossed paths. Or if, as has become more and more likely, it's another one of those stupid interdimensional, multiversal, etc. incidents that have become more common ever since they escaped from Harvest that day. 

He shuts his brain down, exhausted, and stumbles over to where Cassie and Conner are sitting. 

"I'll take first watch," he says, sitting down next to Conner. Bart rolls (literally) over to them and cuddles up at their feet, clutching at his ribs.

"Wake me up in three hours. You're exhausted," Conner says, tapping Tim on the cheek. "Promise."

"I will, Conner. After your watch it should be light out and we can start moving again."

"But where?" Cassie asks, voice hoarse.

"I think we need some serious help," Tim says, hoping that his plan will work.

"Justice League help?" Bart mumbles, head pillowed on Conner's knee. 

"Close," Tim says. "Batman."

\--

It started to make sense. For a minute.

There was too much... history between all of them, between the four of them, between the Flashes and Bart, the Kents and Conner, all of the Bats and Tim, and the... Wonders? Amazons? with Cassie. Too many unspoken feelings that seemed to stem from nothing but just appeared the longer they all hung out together. 

And that was when Harvest showed up as they were traveling to Gotham.

They fought. They lost.

There was an ultimatum. Again. And this time, Tim failed to save his teammate (best friend? more?) from Harvest.

("Tim, its fine. I have to do this. It's all on me, now. Nothing was your fault."

"Conner-"

"I have to do this."

" _Conner._ " 

"Thanks, Tim. Don't blame yourself. You tried to save me. I just can't be saved. Not from this."

"Conner!")

Kon took the blame. He left, despite Tim's best efforts, his pleading, his downright begging because he couldn't bear to lose another friend now... 

(And that seems familiar too, the sense of loss, of everyone leaving him behind and alone and sad.)

And when Kon... disappeared? Died? Who knows, actually, but Tim thinks it's not the first time, because there's some part of him that recognized the pain he felt at watching Kon walk away, walk to his certain death, and it's eerily familiar. Tim initially chalks it up to watching too many friends die recently, but after waking up in a panicked sweat from dreams of chambers filled with green liquids and computerized voices telling him he failed, he isn't as sure anymore. It at least requires reevaluation. 

(There's something else there too, memories of hands on skin and lips on lips and heated breaths and whispers and cornfields and secrets but Tim is resolutely not thinking about it because honestly why add another layer to this complexity and also it makes his heart hurt and recently he's been trying this new technique called 'self-care' so maybe he should stop deliberately thinking about things that physically hurt him.)

"Red Robin?" Batman is talking to him, and Tim snaps out of his thoughts and focuses on him. 

"Sorry. Thinking about a case," he lies ( _I lie to Batman_ ) and looks down to the street before them. "What is it?"

Batman is regarding him with scrutiny, but Tim meets his gaze instead of looking away. He must be satisfied with whatever he sees, because he starts talking again. 

"The Joker broke out of Arkham. Again. We need to get him before he can do any damage to the city. And before Red Hood gets to him." 

Tim stays silent at the Red Hood comment, looking stoically down at the street. "Why are we here, then?" 

"When Nightwing gave me the information from Spyral, they had this address tapped as one of his potential locations. The others are staking out the rest."

"Alone? But we never go up against the Joker without an entire team ready-" Tim starts, but quells at a look from Batman. 

"Of course, I paired them up. Nightwing and Robin on one location, Batwoman and Batwing at another, and Black Canary and Batgirl are at the final one. This is strictly a reconnaissance mission - if anything comes up, they will call it in rather than engage."

Tim snorts. "I'm sure Damian is going to listen to that directive."

Bruce just glares at him, but sighs. Tim knows it's because he knows Tim is probably right. "Code names in the field, only, Red Robin. And Nightwing will keep him on mission."

"Maybe you should show that much faith in Nightwing when he's actually around to see it," Tim mutters. 

He freezes in the next few seconds, waiting for Bruce's scowl of disapproval to fall on him. He doesn't even need to be looking to feel it on his back.

But today, it strangely doesn't come, and Tim doesn't dare to think that it's because Batman knows he's right (hasn't stopped him from glaring at all, and might actually increase the possibility) or because he didn't hear Tim (he hears everything).

"Is your recent - situation - with your team going to affect your capabilities?" Batman asks. "I understand the clone has disappeared."

"He's not - don't call him 'the clone'. And no. I'm fine. Let's go."

And they jump off the roof into the night.

\--

Soon after, Superman died, and _came back_ , but it wasn't the Superman everyone remembered. No, no, it was Superman from an alternate timeline, one where everything was different, better, and still sort of the same. Tim jumped on that immediately and started to sketch out a game plan of how he could talk to this new (old?) Superman. 

Batman was super wary of him - and Tim couldn't necessarily blame him, so that avenue was out. He was considering talking to W- no, Barry, Barry is the Flash, he's been the Flash forever - about it, because maybe he has some memories of alternate timelines and can help him out, but Bart pissed him off and Tim knows that Flash won't want anything to do with them if Bart's involved, regardless of how good of a person he is.

Tim needed to talk to Clark. As soon as possible.

But then Colonel Kane, and the androids, and furiously calculating equations in his head as he tried to stay a step ahead of the enemy and keep everyone else safe. 

And then saying goodbye to Stephanie. And Bruce. And Dick. And the rest of his family. 

He didn't even have a message for the Titans.

As the army of robots flew at him, he wondered what had happened to Conner. If he really was dead, or if he had just been forcibly shoved back into his holding container at the lab. 

Tim hopes that, someday, he'll be able to see Conner again, in a better situation. 

The worst part is that before Tim could actually tell his theory to anyone or even talk to Superman, he died. And honestly, taking into account the memories that have been slowly returning ever since Kon's death, it seems just about par for the course. 

(I mean, really? Losing his girlfriend, best friend and potentially something more, second best friend, father, stepmother (mentally), and adoptive father within the span of a couple months couldn't mean anything other than him being cursed. So. Par for the course, yeah?)

Because why would the universe (or, alternate universe, or timeline, or whatever people were calling it) let Tim Drake have even just a satisfactory ending? It doesn't exist.

Maybe he and Roy Harper should compare notes sometimes. Because what he remembers of Arsenal's life is... not something he ever wants to bring up to the archer, actually.

Tim hates nothing more than leaving hypotheses unanswered. And yet here he is, with unanswered questions and leaving people (Bart. Cassie.) behind who have no idea what they're potentially embroiled in. 

So now he's sitting in the... futuristic? alternate time-liney? limbo-like? purgatory? Whatever it is, it's the equivalent of a padded cell and whoever teleported him to... whenever the fuck this is - wasn't kind enough to let him keep the belt. Or the weapons lined in his cape. Or the ones strapped in his leggings. Or the gauntlets. 

It's fine. He's totally unarmed, and at his captors mercy, and potentially not dead yet? He's fine. It's fine. 

Oh, but how those were famous last words. Because, at least he thinks, being removed from whatever timeline he came from is starting to jog his memory and more and more stuff is coming back the longer he sits there.  

Like the sky splitting open and there being multiple Earths in the sky and working with Lex Luthor to save Conner and then. Then. 

Conner dying. Bart. Not dying, exactly, but close enough. And then dying, even though Tim wasn't - wasn't really around for that one. He was. 

This is where it gets fuzzy. He remembers Bruce, and he remembers Dick, but there's not a lot of context for the year after that. Event. 

It's not like he doesn't have the time to try and remember. He's sure that at least one person back in his universe is trying to get him back, because Batman doesn't give up on his sidekicks, right? He'll be looking. Steph will be making him look, if anything. Because Bruce, the Bruce Tim remembers, wouldn't stop looking until there was a body and no heartbeat, and even then he wouldn't give up. He didn't for Dick, when the bomb was strapped to his chest. He didn't for Jason. 

So Bruce must be making waves, even just to cement his belief that Tim is really gone. It's all fine.

In the meantime, while he tries to figure out a way to break out of wherever and whenever in the multiverse he's trapped, he might as well put a concentrated effort into remembering. Putting together the fractured memories and making sense of his life, the one he barely knows.

And then he'll get the hell out of this cage and find Bruce, find Clark, find the Titans, find Conner, _his_ Conner, and...

He's going to do it. He's going to break out, he's going to find his best friends, and then he, Cassie, Kon, and Bart are going to (hopefully) figure out what's going on and, if possible? 

Save the world. 


End file.
